Indiana Pacers vs. Memphis Grizzlies Prediction, Preview, and Odds

Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas - Championship Sunday

This Sunday, the (24-27) Indiana Pacers will travel to Memphis, TN to take on the (31-18) Memphis Grizzlies. Tipoff will be at 6:00 PM EST inside the FedexForum. This will be the second time that these two teams have matched up this season, as the Grizzlies won the last meeting, 130-112.

The Pacers are coming into this one after losing to the Milwaukee Bucks, 141-131. They struggled on the defensive end of the court, as they will have to get more stops in this one if you want to challenge the Grizzlies on the road.

Memphis is entering this game after losing to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 111-100. They struggled on both ends of the court, as they will have to be more efficient in this one if they want to take care of business at home.

I am looking to end the NFL season strong, as I have picked a side in the Bengals vs. Chiefs one. Everyone has been talking about this game all week, but I've got a great feeling about this one. Buy NFL Sunday Best Bet and I will see you back in the GREEN!

This game was written/published before last night's results.

Can the Pacers Show Up on the Road?

The Indiana Pacers are currently in ninth place in the Eastern Conference standings, as they are 11.5 games back from the first-place Celtics. On offense, they are scoring 115.4 points per game and they have shot 45.8% from the floor. This is the 10th most points scored per contest and the second-lowest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Pacers have the 17th-highest adjusted offensive rating in the NBA. Buddy Hield continues to lead the way on the offensive end of the court, as he is scoring 17.7 points per game on 45.1% shooting from the field. Indiana has also shown that they have multiple players that can heat up from behind the arc. They are shooting 36.3% from deep, which is the 12th-highest free-throw shooting percentage. Indiana has also shot 79.9% at the charity stripe, which is the sixth-highest free-throw shooting percentage in the league.

On the defensive end of the court, the Pacers are allowing 117.3 points per game and their opponents have shot 47.4% from the floor. This is the 25th most points surrendered per game and the 19th-lowest shooting percentage allowed. Accordion to dunksandthrees.com, the Pacers have the 23rd-lowest adjusted defensive rating in the NBA. They have also shown that they struggle to defend on the perimeter. They have allowed their opponents to shoot 37.6% from deep, which is the second-highest three-point shooting percentage allowed in the league. The Indiana Pacers have snatched 42.1 rebounds per game as well. This is the 25th most, as they have to crash the defensive glass if they want to stay competitive in these games.

Injury Report: Tyrese Haliburton PG (Knee), Kendall Brown SG (Leg) and Daniel Theis PF (Knee) are out.

Will the Grizzles Wake Up?

The Memphis Grizzlies are in second place in the Western Conference standings, as they are now three games back from the first-place Nuggets. They have also lost five games in a row. On offense, they are scoring 116.8 points per game and they have shot 46.8% from the floor. This is the seventh most points scored per contest and the 21st-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Grizzlies have the 12th-highest adjusted offensive rating in the NBA. Ja Morant has continued to lead the way on the offensive end of the court, as he is scoring 27.3 points per game on 46.5% shooting from the floor. Unfortunately, Memphis has not shown that they can consistently knock down shots from deep. They are shooting 34.7% from behind the arc, which is the 22nd-highest three-point shooting percentage in the league. The Memphis Grizzlies have also shot 71.3% from the charity stripe, which is the lowest free-throw shooting percentage. They can't miss out on these free points and still expect to win these games.

On defense, the Grizzlies have been tough to beat. They are allowing 112.5 points per game and their opponents have shot 44.9% from the floor. This is the 13th least amount of points surrendered per game and the lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Grizzlies have the lowest adjusted defensive rating in the NBA. They have shown that they will contest shots near the rim and on the outside, as their opponents have only shot 35.7% from deep. This is the 12th lowest three-point shooting percentage allowed, as they have continued to close out on open jump shooters. Memphis has also snatched 48.7 rebounds per game, which is the most in the league.

Injury Report: John Konchar SG (Concussion) and Desmond Bane SG (Knee) are questionable. Danny Green SG (Knee) and Steven Adams C (Knee) are out.

Best Bets for this Game

Full-Game Side Bet

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I am going to ride with the Grizzlies at home and I am going to lay the points (-7). They are the better defensive team in this game and I see them being highly motivated to bounce back after suffering their fifth loss in a row. They won't allow the Pacers to consistently score, as they have the lowest adjusted defensive rating and they are holding their opponents to the lowest shooting percentage from the floor. The Pacers haven't been anything special this season and they only have the 17th-highest adjusted offensive rating. They won't be able to consistently score on the Grizzlies, which will allow Memphis to pull away. I don't see the Pacers showing up defensively either. They are allowing the 25th most points per game and they have the 23rd lowest adjusted defensive rating. The Grizzlies will continue to attack the basket, as they will score enough points to cover the spread. Memphis is scoring the seventh most points per game and they have the 12th-highest adjusted offensive rating. They will find open shots consistently throughout this game and I expect them to take advantage.

Pick the Memphis Grizzlies and lay the points (-7).

Prediction: Memphis Grizzlies -7

Full-Game Total Pick

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I will be hammering the over in this game, as both of these teams will have plenty of possessions to push this total over the number. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Grizzlies have the fourth-highest adjusted tempo rating and the Pacers have the third-highest. Both of these teams will look to score in transition as often as they can and I don't expect them to walk the ball up the court. This will allow both teams to take more shots from the field, as I see the offenses being the story in this one. Indiana is scoring the 10th most points per game and they have shown that they can score from anywhere on the floor. They will continue to attack throughout this game and score just enough points to push this total over the number. Now, the Grizzlies will score the majority of the points that we need to reach this over. They are scoring the seventh most points per game and Indiana has struggled on the defensive end. They won't be able to stop Memphis, as the Grizzlies will consistently score throughout.

Take the over and expect a fast-paced, high-scoring game!

Prediction: Over

Mason graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder and he has been watching SportsCenter since before he could walk. He has been crunching numbers since he could learn to count and nothing makes Mason happier in this world than talking sports, unless he is on the golf course! We are very happy to have added Mason to our team at StatSalt and you will be glad as well. Let's win some money!